Tusvanyos Is Next Stop on Peace Mission

Next week marks the start of the 33rd Balvanyos Free Summer University and Student Camp (in Baile Tusnad), commonly referred to as Tusvanyos, which runs this year under the motto "On a better track". Magyar Nemzet talked to Zsolt Nemeth, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Hungarian National Assembly and founder of the Free University, about the meaning and significance of the motto, the importance of dialogue and peace.

Zsolt Nemeth, Fidesz chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Hungarian National Assembly and founder of the Free Summer University, at a press conference on the programs of this year's Tusvanyos Free Summer University. On the left: Maria Tarnok , chief organizer in Hungary and chairman of the board of trustees of the Pro Minoritate - for Minorities Foundation, on the right: Tibor T. Toro, vice president of the Hungarian Alliance of Transylvania (EMSZ/AMT) (Photo: MTI/Robert Hegedus)

The first Free University was held in 1990 with preparations for the 33rd Tusvanyos Festival under way. Since then it has been the forum where world events could always be discussed freely and informally. Different opinions can be voiced, views can be exchanged and now there are a thousand invited speakers. The motto of this year's camp is "On a better track". What does this mean?

I think what you said at the beginning is an extremely great virtue of Tusvanyos: at this camp, cooperation and not confrontation is the dominant political style. It is a very significant part of our ars poetics to have dialogue and to ask questions. Today, in particular, we need to ask questions about our current situation, what our goals are in this current situation, and how we can achieve them. It is therefore also very important that

opposition politicians are present at Tusvanyos, Romanians are present, people from neighboring nations, guests from Central Europe are present, and international public opinion is also present, not only through journalists, but also through a great many political analysts, experts and speakers. The camp now has dozens of international presenters.

And let's not forget that three of the founders of the camp from our side were a young doctor friend of mine and a BBC journalist, David Campanale, who will be speaking on the opening panel and who has recently become known as a Christian politician.

With regard to the motto, I would like to emphasise the importance of courageous ideas, as we have seen in recent years. But bold ideas will only be successful if they are coupled with sufficient political strength. It is not only the software that matters, but also the hardware. What is important is how we can put our ideas, our objectives into practice, get on the right track, get on a better track.

Zsolt Nemeth to Magyar Nemzet: Cooperation, not confrontation, is the dominant political style at Tusvanyos

We don't know whether Patriots for Europe will live up to our expectations, but we are confident it will, and that the ambitions we have represented alone in recent years - often in a ratio of 26 to one - will no longer have to be carried alone. We are confident that by taking seriously the notion of 'can't do it alone', this construction can be significant in the preservation of our values and that this cooperation will spur a planning for the future. Want of future is what the present war situtation is all about, and in this planning for the future where Europe's place will be is crucial. We consider it important that Europe is ours. Let's occupy Europe, let us take Europe back. But NATO is also important to us, as is the West and the US, just as our region is important to us, along with what this region will look like in the future, and what kind of future we will be able to outline for the Hungarian communities abroad.

You mentioned dialogue. The importance of dialogue , especially with our neighbors, has long been evident to us in Hungary because of the Hungarian minority in the surrounding countries. We have also seen that dialogue leads to results; we need only think of how our relations with Serbia have never been as good as they are now. The prime minister's peace mission has also highlighted the importance of dialogue and the need to not cut off channels of communication. And Donald Trump, too, seems to have turned to dialogue after the assassination attempt on him, as instead of criticizing the Biden administration, he delivered a unifying speech at the RNC nomination rally. What message does this send to the world?

He drew attention to an extremely important point. Trump announcement that he has rewritten his convention speech indicates that he wants to focus on national unity rather than confrontation. I think 

the world hungers for common denominators to be represented and the resolution of the polarization into which politics has sunk throughout the Western world, but also here in Hungary.

It is difficult to overcome this polarization when such a shock occurs in political life, when violence is unleashed. We are seeing the return of the reflexes familiar from the era of political assassinations: the attempts on Reagan, on Pope John Paul II, on Margaret Thatcher - that we have forgotten, but which are back.

Now, shortly after the attempt on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico's life, there has been an attack on Donald Trump, after which we can safely say that it is only thanks to the grace of God that we are able to talk today about the national unity that Trump represents and that he has now articulated, so that it can be restored and realized in the United States. And it may have a spill-over effect onto all of Western culture, into Europe, where we continue to see the dominant theses of militancy and inevitable conflict. From this point of view, I consider our prime minister's peace mission, Hungary's peace mission, to be important, because Hungarian politics is trying to express this through many voices.

At the press conference you said that the peace mission has already proved to be a success. Can you expand on that?

I think the success of the peace mission is already apparent because there has been a lot of debate, a lot of reflection, a lot of dissociation and a lot of support surrounding it. It has achieved its goal, it has succeeded in hacking the monotonous drum of the inevitable military confrontation narrative. By all accounts, this is already a success. Our task in the coming period is to continue along this path. A similar, perhaps not so spectacular thing is that the final document of NATO's anniversary summit in Washington already includes - and I should note that this was a Hungarian initiative - the need to maintain dialogue with Russia, despite the fact that Russia committed and continues to commit aggression and despite the fact that it poses a threat to international security and international peace. So, despite all this, the closing document states that the channels of communication must be maintained. On the day after the summit, the defense ministers of Russian and the US sat down with each other for talks.

The Hungarian EU presidency can also play a major role in shaping the future of Europe, and Hungary has set important goals. Many people support our country, but many are critical of the presidency and are planning to boycott it. And they are attacking the Patriots for Europe group in similar fashion. What can we expect in the future?

Dialogue remains only a nice idea until it is buttressed by power.

There must also be a strong will behind the dialogue.

It is important that we are the third largest force in the European Parliament. And if we manage to build a strong strategic alliance with the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group of Giorgia Meloni - with whom, incidentally, we have a very close-knit and good relationship even now - so if we can serve as a bridge between the two communities, then we can gain even more influence.

If we can achieve the strengthening of this political family in terms of content, develop common denominators and bring certain initiatives to fruition, then there will be more people who say, like Emmanuel Macron did, that dialogue is not only the right of Viktor Orban, the PM of a country, but also that, in some cases, is an essential component in finding a solution. I single him out because he was the leader among the major member states who spoke out breaking with the chorus that dominates the European Commission. By the way, their [Hungarian EU presidency] boycott initiative would basically have a negative impact on the European Union, not on Hungary, which is why I consider it a counterproductive proposal.

Returning to Tusvanyos: What role can an event of this size, which traditionally seeks answers, provides an opportunity for an exchange of ideas, and is attended by many political actors, play in the search for the future you mentioned?

It is safe to say that this year's Tusvanyos will be an important stop on the peace mission.

Cover photo: Zsolt Nemeth, Fidesz chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Hungarian National Assembly and founder of the Free University, at a press conference on the programs of this year's Tusvanyos Free Summer University. On the left: Maria Tarnok , chief organizer in Hungary and chairman of the board of trustees of the Pro Minoritate - for Minorities Foundation, on the right: Tibor T. Toro, vice president of the Hungarian Alliance of Transylvania (EMSZ/AMT) (Photo: MTI/Robert Hegedus)